Carton for cylindrical objects and blank for forming a plurality of said cartons



June 11, 1957 e. c. CURRIE 2,795,365

CARTON FOR CYLINDRICAL OBJECTS AND BLANK FOR FORMING A PLURALITY OF SAID CARTONS Filed April 5. 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 BY *M ATTOR NEYS.

June 11, 1957 e. c. CURRIE 2,795,365 7 CARTON FOR CYLINDRICAL OBJECTS AND BLANK FOR FORMING A PLURALITY OF SAID CARTONS Filed April 5. 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR kovm 6' (bee/z.

@Y @AWQZL I ATTORNEYS.

ilnited States Patent CARTON FOR CYLINDRICAL OBJECTS AND BLANK FOR FORMING A PLURALITY OF SAID CARTONS Grover C. Currie, Charlotte, N. C., assignor to Dacam Corporation, Charlotte, N. C., a corporation of North Carolina Application April 5, 1954, Serial No. 420,901

Claims. (Cl. 229- -40) This invention relates to a carton for carrying a plurality of cylindrical articles and more especially to an improved blank for said carton and method of cutting blanks from sheet material so as to result inthe least possible Waste of material.

The advantages of providing a structure which may be cut from a single sheet of bendable or foldable material with a minimum of waste has long been realized and many prior attempts have been made to provide a carton, a plurality of which could be cut from a single sheet of material with a minimum of waste. The problem is greatly simplified when one desires to devise a substantially square carton wherein all sides are of equal dimensions, but a different situation is presented when an elongated rectangular carton is desired. This is necessarily so because of the difiering dimensions between the'end walls and side walls of an elongated rectangular carton.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an elongated substantially rectangular carton for cylindrical articles which is formed from a blank so shaped and folded that a plurality of such blanks may be cut from a single sheet of bendable or foldable material with a minimum of waste, and wherein each blank so formed may be erected into a rigid and sturdy' container for relatively heavy cylindrical articles, such as containers for beverages and the like.

It is another object of this invention to provide a carton having side walls, top and bottom Walls and end panels, the upper and lower edges of each of said end panels being spaced from said top and bottom walls, and said top and bottom walls having openings therein which serve as hand grips to facilitate transportation of individual cartons.

It is another object of this invention to provide a carton of the type described which may be shipped in knocked-down fiat position and subsequently. erected, filled and sealed by the use of automatic machinery. It is another object of this invention to provide a carton having top, bottom and side walls each of the same length, but of greater length than the end walls and wherein the end walls when in blank form are initially formed the same length as the top, bottom and side walls, but are subsequently folded so opposite side portions of said end walls actually'form portions of the side Walls. Thus the'top or'bottom portions of a given blank may be'cut from a portion of a sheet nested between adjacent top or bottom portions of the next adjacent blank.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated,'othe'r objects will appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figurel is a plan view of a piece of sheet stock illustrating the manner in which the carton blanks are cut therefrom;

Figure 2 is an enlarged plan view of an individual cartonwblank removed from the sheet of stock and show- 'i ce ing the manner in which the same is creased or scored;

Figure 3 is an isometric view of a. partially erected carton showing the same in knocked-down flat shipping position; t

Figure 4 is an enlarged isometric View of a partially erected carton showing the manner in which cylindrical articles may be placed therein by the use of automatic machinery;

Figure 5 is an isometric view of the assembled carton showing the cylindrical articles positioned therein.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 broadly designates a piece of sheet stock formed of any suitable material from which it is desired to manufacture cartons. The sheet 10 is illustrated in Figure 1 as being of a width equal to the length of the individual carton blanks to be formed therefrom, although it is to be understood that the shteet 10 may be of a width suflicient to permit'cutting carton blanks disposed end to end as well as nested along their edges as shown in Figure l.

The piece of stock 10 is shown as having three carton blanks cut therefrom broadly indicated at 11, 11a and 11b and portions of blanks 11c and 11d are shown adjacent the distal edges of the blanks 11 and 11b. For purposes of illustration, various components of the cartons will be referred to as top and bottom walls, side walls and line 12 to define the upper edge of all the component of the blank 11a in Figure 1.

parts of the blank 11 in Figure l. The line of cut 12 will, at the same time, define the lower edge of all the component parts of the blank 11c,'it being observed in Figure 1 that opposite ends of the blanks 11 and 110 are formed adjacent each other.

In a like manner, the stock 10 may be cut along an irregular line 13 to define the lower edge of all the component parts of the blank 11 simultaneously with the forming of the upper edges of all the component parts In a like manner, an irregular transverse cut line 12a defines the lower and upper edges of the respective blanks 11a and 11b and an irregular transverse out line 13a defines the lower and upper edges of the respective blanks 11b and 11d. The

' only excess material resulting from cutting the carton blanks in this manner is illustrated by the shaded areas in Figure 1. The stock 10 may be additionally out along the lines of cut 14 to sever this excess material from the carton.

This manner of forming the carton blanks 11, 11a, 11b, 11c and 11d is illustrative only, it being understood that, as a practical matter, all lines of cut may be performed simultaneously in a single stamping operation. The carton blanks may be scored at the time of cutting or, if desired, may be' subsequently scored as shown in Figure 2 to facilitate the erection of the carton.

The cartons formed from each of the carton blanks 11, 11a, 11b, 11c and 11a are identical and for purposes of illustration only, the carton formed from the blank 11 will be described in detail.

The carton 11 comprises top and bottom flaps 15 and 16 liingedly connected, as by score or crease lines.

17 and 18, to opposite edges of a side wall or panel 19. An end wall or panel 20 of substantially the same or less' height than the side wall 19, and having a neck portion 21, is hingedly connected to the side wall 19, as by a score or crease line 22 which extends at right angles to the score lines 17 and 18. The end wall 20 also has a neck portion 23 which is scored or creased transversely thereof, as at 24, forhingedly connecting the same to a second side wall or panel 25. It should be noted that the crease lines 22 and 24 are disposed inwardly of the junctures of the neck portions 21 and 23 with the side walls 19 and 25 so the effective length of the end wall 20 is less than that of the side walls 19 and 25, but the additional length of the neck portions 22 and 24 is such as to accommodate the top and bottom flaps of the contiguous blanks 11c and 11a when they are initially cut from the sheet 10.

Another end wall or panel 26 having a reduced neck portion 27 is hingedly connected to the edge of the side wall 25 remote from the end wall 20, as by a score or crease line 30. Top and bottom flaps 31 and 32 are hingedly secured to opposite edges of the side wall 25, as by respective score or crease lines 33and 34 which are aligned with the score lines 17 and 18 on opposite edges of the sidewall 19. The edge of the side wall 19 remote from the end wall 20 has a connecting flap 35 integral therewith and adapted to mate with an elongated connecting flap 36 hingedly connected, as by a creaseline or score line 37 to another. reduced neck portion 38 integral with and extending from the end wall 26 remote from the neck portion 27.

One side of the connecting flap 36 is provided with a suitable adhesive 39 for securing the flap 36 to the under surface of the connecting flap 35 on the side wall 19. The end walls 20,26 have respective score lines 40, 41 extending transversely thereof in spaced parallel relation to the respective score lines 22, 24 and 30, 37. Each of the top and bottom flaps 15, 31 and 16, 32 has a pair of spaced tab portions 43, 44 and 45, 46, respectively, formed integral therewith. The tabs 43, 44 and 45, 46 coincide with the edges of their respective top and bottom flaps 15, 31 and 16, 32 remote from the side walls 19 and 25 and define opposite ends of cut-outs 50, 51, 52 and 53 in respective top and bottom flaps 15, 31 and 16, 32.

After the carton blanks have been stamped out or cut as shown in Figure l and scored or creased as shown in Figure 2, the blank 11 may be folded along score lines 40, 41 inwardly toward the observer in Figure 2 to bring the connecting flap 36 into engagement with the connecting flapi35 extending from the side wall 19 at which time the flap 36 may be folded along score line 37 and secured to the flap 35 as by the adhesive 39. In this manner the carton is partially erected to the position shown in Figure 3 which is a highly desirable and convenient position for shipping the carton from the manufacturer to the packaging plant preparatory to filling the carton with cylindrical objects or articles.

When it is subsequently desired to fill the carton the same may be extended to the position shown in Figure 4 by any suitable method such as suction means placed adjacent the outer surfaces of the side walls 19 and 25. If desired, the suction means may be of a type such as disclosed in my prior Patent No. 2,603,924. The carton may be maintained in this position while the cylindrical objects or cans C are moved upwardly within the. carton by suitable machinery schematically illustrated at M. Suitable adhesive also designated at 39 may then be placed on the tabs 43 and 45 on the top and bottom flaps 15 and 16 for securing the same in superposed relation to the tabs 44 and 46 on the top and bottom flaps 31 and 32.

It will be observed in Figure 5 that the cut-outs 50, 51, 52 and 53 defined by the pairs of tabs 43, 44, 45 and 46 form openings between the top flaps 15, 31 and the bottom fiaps 16, 32, which openings serve as convenient hand holes for transporting the filled carton.

It will also be observed in Figure 5 that the filled and assembled carton presents a neat rectangular package which is readily adaptable for stacking in large numbers and which requires a minimum of space and, by creasing or folding the blank intermediate the neck portions 21, 23, 27 and 38 thereof, the end walls 20 and 26 are spaced outwardly from opposite ends of the top and bottom walls, formed by the respective flaps 15, 31 and 16, 32, thus exposing portions of the articles C contained therein for advertising and display purposes.

It is thus seen that there is provided an improved carton for cylindrical objects which may be fully erected and filled by the use of automatic machinery, and a plurality of which may be simultaneously or successively stamped from a single sheet of material. Thus, the entire process, from stamping to filling and sealing, re quires a minimum of material and labor as the entire process may be cheaply and economically performed.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention and, although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only, and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the claims.

I claim:

1. A carton having interconnected side walls and end walls, a plurality of top and bottom flaps spaced from the upper and lower edges of said end walls and hingedly connected to said side walls, each of said top and bottom flaps having tab portions projecting from their proximate edges, means for securing the tab portions of the respective top and bottom flaps to each other in overlapping relation, the proximate edges of said top and bottom flaps between the tab portions being spaced from each other and said edges with the proximal edges of the tab portions defining elongated hand openings in the top and bottom of the carton and the proximal edges of the tab portions on each flap being positioned transverse to the elongated openings and defining the ends of the openings.

2. A rectangular carton having interconnected side walls and end walls, the side walls being of a greater length than the end walls, a top flap and a bottom flap hingedly connected to the respective top and bottom edges of said side walls, each ofsaid top and bottom flaps having tab portions projecting from their proximate edges and adapted to be secured together for closing the top and bottom of the carton, said tab portions defining an opening elongated therebetween in the free edge of each of said flaps, the proximal edges of the tab portions on each flap being positioned transverse to the elongated opening and defining the ends of the opening, said end walls and said side walls having reduced portions at their junctures adjacent their top and bottom edges, the width of each reduced portion being equal to the width of each tab portion, said reduced portions defining a centrally disposed projection on the upper and lower edges of each end wall defined by and between adjacent reduced portions, said projections on the edges of each end wall terminating in spaced relation to the proximate edges of the top and bottom flaps, and the width of each of said projections being equal to the length of the opening in the free edge of each top and bottom flap between said tab portions.

3. A rectangular carton having interconnected side walls and end walls, the side walls being of a greater length than the end walls, a top flap and a bottom flap hingedly connected to the respective top andbottom edges of said side walls, each of said top and bottom flaps having tab portions projecting from their proximate edges and adapted to be secured together for closing the top and bottom of the carton, said tab portions defining an elongated hand opening in the free edge of each of said flaps between said tab portions, the proximal edges of the tab portions on each flap being positioned transverse to the elongated hand opening and defining the ends of the opening, said end walls and said side walls at their junctures adjacent their top and bottom edges having reduced neck portions, and the width of each end wall with the adjacent neck portions being equal to the length of each of the top and bottom flaps.

4. A rectangular carton having interconnected side Walls and end walls, the side walls being of a greater length than the end walls, a top flap and a bottom flap hingedly connected to the respective top and bottom edges of said side walls, each of said top and bottom flaps having tab portions projecting from their proximate edges, adhesive means for securing the tab portions of the respective top and bottom flaps to each other in overlapping relation, said tab portions in each flap defining an elongated opening therebetween, the proximal edges of the tab portions on each flap being positioned transverse to the elongated opening and defining the ends of the opening, the top and bottom edges of the end walls defining openings between said top and bottom flaps and a portion of the top and bottom edges of the side walls adjacent the end walls having reduced portions defining an edge of said openings, the overall length of each end wall and adjacent side wall portion defining said opening being equal to the length of each top and bottom flap.

5. A flat blank for forming a carton comprising interconnected side wall and end wall forming panels arranged in alinement with each other, the side wall forming panels being of a greater length than the end wall forming panels, flaps hingedly connected to the side edges of said side wall forming panels, each of said flaps having tab portions projecting outwardly from their side edges, said tabs defining an elongated opening in the free edge of each of said flaps between said tabs, said elongated openings being positioned parallel to the side edges of the side wall forming panels, said end wall forming panels and said side wall forming panels having reduced portions at their junctures, the width of each reduced portion being equal to the width of each tab portion, and said reduced portions defining centrally disposed projections on the side edges of each end wall forming panel, the width of each of said projections being equal to the length of the opening in the free edge of each flap between said tab portions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 874,515 Lorenz Dec. 24, 1907 1,236,444 Jones Aug. 14, 1917 2,022,305 Wellman Nov. 26, 1935 2,090,882 Zimmerman Aug. 24, 1937 2,196,502 Kells Apr. 9, 1940 2,284,989 Rue June 2, 1942 2,680,556 Currie June 8, 1954 

